Garment support



B. A. COOK GARMENT SUPPORT Oct. 31, 1950 Filed July 5, 1947 M d. M,

INVENTOR.

grroezvfs Patented Oct. 31, 1950 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE GARMENT SUPPORT Burton A. Cook, North Hollywood, Calif. Application July 5, 1947, Serial No. 759,005

1 Claim. 1

This invention relates to an auxiliary supporting device which is adapted to be mounted upon the respective end portions of a conventional garment hanger, whereby the garment may be supported at the shoulder portions in an improved manner. Numerous forms of such auxiliary supporting devices have heretofore been proposed, for attachment to the conventional garment hanger, and the device of this invention is distinguished therefrom particularly in the manner of attachment, providing for retention of the device upon the hanger body in a plurality of positions accommodating the structure to different garment widths.

One of the particular objects of the invention is to provide an auxiliary supporting device which is adapted for frictional attachment to the body portion of a conventional garment hanger, which establishes the extreme outer limits of the garment supporting structure at an elevated position relative to the garment hanger body portion, whereby the retention of a garment upon the hanger is facilitated.

In the prior suggested forms of auxiliary support of the general character of the device of this invention, there is an apparent disregard, for the most part, of the requirements for properly supporting relatively light weight feminine garments. Minor consideration of the support of such garments may be noted in the prior art, but for the most part the prior investigators have concerned themselves with structures which are intended to more adequately support rather heavy garments, such as mens coats and the like.

According to my invention, auxiliary garment supporting means are provided for attachment to the end portions of a conventional hanger structure of the type formed as an elongated arcuate body portion of a length corresponding to normal shoulder width, having a supporting hook member at its central portion, and usually formed of wood, such supporting means being formed as separate supporting devices of similar shape and size, and comprising an elongated shell member having an open lower face and side Walls which merge into a rounded end wall at the outwardly disposed end and a convexly curved upper wall, such side walls converging in an inward direction to cause the transverse width of the shell member to be at a minimum at the inwardly disposed end of the device, together with coacting shoulder means at the inward end and adjacent the outward end for engagement upon the hanger body member. The first-mentioned shoulder means are formed as continuations of the side Walls, and are spaced apart a distance conforming to the transverse thickness of the hanger body portion and adapted for frictional engagement upon the side wall portions thereof. The second-mentioned shoulder means are arranged in longitudinal alinement with the first-mentioned shoulder means and are located adjacent the outward end of the device, to facilitate alinement of the device upon the hanger body, and are preferably also adapted for frictional engagement upon the hanger body. In cooperation with the second-mentioned shoulder means I preferably provide a shoulder portion adapted to rest upon the upper surface of the hanger body to space the upper wall of the device in greater separation from the hanger body at the outward end of the device than at the inward end. This latter feature is such as to cause the upper surface of the auxiliary supporting device to slope outwardly at a flatter angle than the hanger body itself, whereby flimsy garments of the character of negligee, for example, are more adequately retained upon the hanger.

A further object of the invention is to provide auxiliary supporting means for attachment to a conventional garment hanger, which is simple and inexpensive of construction, light Weight, attractive, and functionally shaped to provide a maximum utility in use. p

The above and other objects of the invention will be brought out in the ensuing description of a preferred form of the invention, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. l is a perspective view of a complete hanger assembly provided with a pair of auxiliary supporting devices according to my invention;

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section on a vertical plane, showing one of the devices as applied to the hanger body, as taken on line 22 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is an inverted plan view of the device illustrated in Fig. 2; and

Fig. 4 is a transverse section of the device as shown in Fig. 2, taken on line 4-4 therein.

Referring specifically to the drawings, the auxiliary supporting device or adjustable shoulder pad, as it has become known in trade, may comprise a shell member indicated generally at I, having generally straight side wall portions 2 which merge upwardly into a curved upper wall 3 and a rounded outward-end wall 4. The side walls 2 converge inwardly (toward the medial point of the hanger body) to form a narrow inward end structure 5, and there define a pair of laterally opposed shoulder members 6 and I,

Outwardly of the narrow end portion 5, and preferably adacent the widest portion of the shell I provide a transversely extending wall member 8 which has a three-fold function: (a) to increase the rigidity of the structure; (27) to provide a pair of laterally opposed shoulder members generally alined with the shoulders 6 and l, as by means of a recess 9 defining laterally spaced shoulders H! and ii; and (c) to provide a shoulder IZ in spaced relation to the upper wall 3 in position to engage upon the upper surface of the hanger body is and locate the outward end of the shell member I at a greater separation from the hanger body 13 than the inward end 5 is located.

The shell member I is preferably formed of a synthetic plastic, as by injection molding, the plastic being one which is capable of at least a minor amount of resilient deformation. The wall or shoulder portions 5 and 1 are adapted to be sprung apart sufficient to frictionally engage upon the lateral side walls of the hanger body it, as at [3a, and a comparable frictional engagement may be had by the shoulders I!) and II, as at I31), although the function of the shoulders Ill and I l is primarily that of maintaining the shell member in alinement upon the hanger body [3 and thereby prevent transverse dislocation of the outer end which would be such as to put undue stress upon the narrow inward end 5.

As may be seen from Figs. 1 and 2, the elevation of the outward end of the device as obtained bythe shoulder 12 in the transverse Wall member 8, serves to cause the auxiliary supporting members to slope outwardly at a lesser angle than :a

that defined by the arcuate hanger body, which lesser slope, cooperating with the gradual widening of the shell, serves to facilitate the retention of the shoulder straps or shoulder portions of light-weight garments, and thereby retain the garment upon the hanger.

The shoulder pads of this invention are subject to minor adjustment along the length of the hanger body 13, as between the positions provided by relative movement of the hanger body between the dot-dash position He (Fig. 2) and the full line position shown. This minor adjustment of an inch or so at each end of the hanger has been found adequate for general use.

Minor modifications of the above described structure will undoubtedly occur to those skilled in the art, wherefore I do not consider my invention as limited to the specific details herein shown and described, but rather to the scope of the subjoined claim.

I claim:

An adjustable shoulder pad adapted for attachment at an end portion of a garment hanger having an arcuately extending hanger body of conventional form, which comprises: an elongated shell member having an open lower face and side walls extending upwardly from said lower face and merging into a curved closed upper wall, said shell member being of reduced width at one end and said side walls terminating at said one end to define opposed longitudinally extending spaced wall members adapted for frictional engagement upon the side wall portions of such a hanger body at one position along the length thereof with said upper wall bearing upon the upper edge of said hanger body, said shell member being provided with a transverse wall member adjacent its other end, said transverse Wall member being provided with a recess defining transversely opposed shoulder means longitudinally alined with said spaced wall members and adapted for frictional engagement upon the side wall portions of such a hanger body at another position along the length thereof, and said recess further defining a downwardly directed shoulder member spaced from said upper wall and adapted to engage the upper edge of such a hanger body to locate said upper wall at a greater spacing from said hanger body at said other end of said shell member than at said one end.

BURTON A. COOK.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 892,149 Gould June 30, 1908 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 8,148 Great Britain Apr, 24, 1895 

